Wyoming
Wyoming woman reflects on police standoff that destroyed her home
It was a tragic day that many in Sheridan, Wyoming, won’t soon forget—and that certainly includes Caro Hamilton.
“It was very frightening and there were a lot of people that were affected,” Hamilton says.
On Feb. 13, 2024,Sheridan police officer Nevada Krinkee was shot and killed in the line of duty while serving a trespassing notice, a shocking crime that left Sheridan heartbroken.
The man who killed Krinkee, William Lowery, found his way to Hamilton’s home, where a 30-hour standoff ensued.
For Hamilton, the ordeal began with a phone call from her daughter.
“She said that there were police surrounding my house and that they told her to tell me not to come home and I went to ask her what was going on and the phone went dead,” she recalls.
MTN News
She had no idea that a police officer had been shot nearby and no idea that the suspect was in her basement, but she knew one thing.
“We were freaking out. We knew that my mom was in the house.”
Her 80- year-old mother was upstairs in the house. Hamilton says it took two frantic calls to police before they finally called for her mother to come out—something that still frustrates her.
“And so finally we did get my mother out, but yes, we were very terrified because obviously this guy wasn’t in his right mind at the time after what had happened and we didn’t know what could happen to her,” Hamilton says.
By then, she was learning more about why police had surrounded the home and were keeping her, and everyone else, two blocks away.
She says didn’t know Lowery personally but says that he was an acquaintance of a man who was boarding in her basement and that the boarder was supposed to help Lowery move that day.
While her mother was out safely, she had other worries about other occupants inside.
“I was concerned about my dogs and really wanted to get them out of there,” she says.
Police used water, tear gas, and finally brought the standoff to an end when they used an excavator to tear down part of the house. Lowery was shot and killed by police after he fired at them while attempting to flee.
And while her home was left in ruins, there was one bright spot.
“The little dog was found under rubble where the living room used to be. And then my big dog, she was in the basement. They found her, she kind of wading in the water and it was kind of freezing around her. But they got him out and that was the best thing. So I was really super grateful for that,” she says.
Her cat, who was also in the house, has not been found.
Caro says she is thankful for the new house that been built in place of her old one thanks to insurance and a settlement with the city. She hopes to move in next month.
MTN News
And while the tragic ordeal is something she and many others in Sheridan will probably never forget, she also says she will forever remember the support many in the community.
“It was overwhelming. It was amazing the amount of community support that was shown to me,” she says.
Wyoming
Measles confirmed in Teton County, Wyoming, as summer crowds flock to parks – East Idaho News
JACKSON, Wyo. (WyoFile) — After confirming a case of measles in an unvaccinated adult in Teton County, Wyoming, health officials are warning the public about possible exposure at locations in Grand Teton National Park and Jackson.
The news comes as summer crowds flood the region with tourists from around the world.
The public may have been exposed between June 17-25 at several locations in Teton County, according to the Wyoming Health Department. They include restaurants in Grand Teton National Park’s Colter Bay Village on June 17-18; a Colter Bay convenience store on June 20 and the Target in Jackson on June 25.
“We are asking people who may have been exposed to watch for measles symptoms for 21 days past the exposure date and consider avoiding crowded public places and high-risk settings such as daycare centers,” State Health Officer Alexia Harrist said in a press release.
Monitoring is especially critical for people who have not been vaccinated with the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine, according to the health department.
It marks Wyoming’s second confirmed case of the highly contagious infection in 2026. Wyoming went 15 years without a confirmed case of measles until last year.
Resurgence
Health officials confirmed Wyoming’s first 2026 case in May. An adult patient in Fremont County who did not have a confirmed vaccination status caught the disease, according to the Wyoming Department of Health.
Measles was declared eliminated in the U.S. in 2000 — indicating no endemic transmission for 12 months or more. But it re-emerged in recent years primarily due to declining vaccination rates and increased public health skepticism. Those trends spawned during the COVID-19 pandemic and have persisted during the second Trump administration.
The neighboring state of Utah is one of America’s 2026 measles hotspots, with 499 cases reported so far this year.
RELATED | Anguished parents. Doctors in tears. Utah’s long measles outbreak takes a toll
A vaccination rate of 95% is necessary for community immunity to prevent measles outbreaks, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
In 2025, Wyoming’s proportion of kindergarten students who had completed the MMR vaccine was 93.6%, the CDC reports. That rate is higher than Colorado, Utah and Montana for the same year.
However, it’s declined overall since 2012-13, when Wyoming’s kindergarten vaccination rate was above 97%. It fell to 90.2% in 2020-21 before inching back up to the current 93.6%.
A measles case had not been reported in the state since 2010 until July 2025, when the health department confirmed measles in an unvaccinated child from Natrona County. By year’s end, 13 more cases were confirmed. The majority involved unvaccinated children and adults.
Along with being extremely contagious, measles can cause severe complications like pneumonia and brain swelling and can leave lasting impacts on the immune system. One to three out of every 1,000 children who become infected with measles will die from complications, according to the CDC.
RELATED | The US is on the verge of losing its measles elimination status. Here’s why that matters
RELATED | Measles is not the only disease on the rise. Mumps also may be making a comeback
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GILLETTE, Wyo. — As the Aug. 18 primary election approaches, County 17 is introducing candidate questionnaires to help voters make informed decisions at the ballot box.
Every candidate in the primary field was sent the same three questions and given a limit of 500 words, which could be distributed among their answers as they saw fit. To ensure a fair and direct line to the community, all responses are published exactly as submitted, without edits or alterations.
Candidates were asked:
- What are the most crucial challenges your constituents are facing?
- If elected, how will you address these challenges?
- What qualities or qualifications do you possess that have prepared you to meet these challenges?
Questionnaires are being published on a rolling basis online through Aug. 11. They will be accessible via the County 17 Election Tracker.
Scott Smith (R), Wyoming state treasurer
What are the most crucial challenges your constituents are facing?
Everywhere I go many Wyoming citizens are concerned that our government is selling out our state lands to the highest bidder for crony capitalism. Some are concerned about Data Centers, Commercial Wind Generators, or nuclear waste storage. The biggest concern is the resources these outfits are taking, secondly, they are concerned about health issues related to living nearby, and lastly they are concerned with cost associated with these projects being passed onto the taxpayer.
If elected, how will you address these challenges?
One of the things that many people don’t know is that the State Treasurer sits on the State Land and Investment Board. (SLIB) The same issues that concern our citizens are the same reasons that I have decided to run for this office. The SLIB has voted to lease state lands to a hydrogen plant in Converse County that would take eight gallons of our valuable water to produce one gallon of hydrogen jet fuel using wind and solar generation to power the plant. These same elected officials have sold off $100 million of our state lands to the federal government. I believe that some things are not for sale. As Treasurer you can count on me to count the cost and listen to the people in the public testimony. If we are going to accept some of these projects the citizens need to have the benefit, like lower utility costs.
What qualities/qualifications do you possess that have prepared you to meet these challenges?
My bachelor’s degree is in Business Administration with an emphasis in management and marketing. I will be a leader in the state treasurer’s office that creates a positive work environment that will allow our investment team to create higher returns on the people’s money that the state invests. I would like to work with the legislature to use these interest earnings to buy down the people’s property taxes to alleviate part of the burden inflation has caused on the average citizen. My day job, I work as a bookkeeper and work with numbers day in and day out and have corrected some inefficiencies to help small businesses become more profitable. I plan to do that within the state office and make those profits available to the legislature to reduce the tax burden for the people. I have also served in the Wyoming House of Representatives for Goshen County and I have served on the Appropriations Committee and I am familiar with the massive state budget.
Related
Scroll down for a list of fireworks restrictions across Wyoming.
I usually don’t buy fireworks for the 4th of July. I go places to watch them. But since this year is the 250th anniversary of our nation, I was going to purchase a small arsenal and have a blast, pardon the pun.
But this has been a very dry year, as happens now and then in the cycles of weather. So I figured I’d wait until things were wet again and just hold my personal celebration a little late.
Many towns across Wyoming have canceled their July 4th fireworks due to the drought. They don’t want you firing off any either.
Based on 2026 reports, several Wyoming towns and counties have canceled or significantly restricted Fourth of July fireworks displays due to high wildfire risks, drought conditions, and Stage 1 fire restrictions.
Canceled/Restricted Public Displays (2026)
- Gillette/Campbell County: The CAM-PLEX fireworks show was postponed, and the county is maintaining a Stage 1 fire restriction due to extreme drought.
- Douglas: The Volunteer Fire Department canceled the 4th of July fireworks show due to fire concerns.
- Newcastle: Fireworks show canceled due to high fire danger, according to a June 27 report.
- Pine Haven: Canceled its Fourth of July fireworks display, according to a June 27 report.
- Riverton: Passed a resolution banning personal fireworks within city limits on July 4, with only a limited, designated area for public displays at the Honeycutt Softball and Saban Baseball Complex.
- Teton County: Fireworks have been historically canceled, and fire officials are urging residents to only attend official, professional displays due to extreme fire danger (confirmed for 2026).
City-Wide Personal Fireworks Bans (2026)
- Cheyenne: Consumer fireworks are prohibited within city limits, despite the county lifting restrictions, with only small novelties allowed.
- Casper: Fireworks are prohibited within city limits and in unincorporated Natrona County.
Key Locations Under Restrictions (2026)
- BLM Land: Fireworks are prohibited on public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management in Wyoming.
- Weston County: A county-wide ban covers Newcastle and Upton due to high drought conditions.
Even little Chugwater, Wyoming, population 175, has banned fireworks inside its little town limits.
At the State Capital in Cheyenne, however, they will go right ahead with a fireworks display, right over the capital building itself. Dry weather be dammed.
Weird Fireworks Names You’ll Find In Wyoming
Just some of the odd names we found while shopping.
Gallery Credit: Glenn Woods
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